


once was blind (but now I see)

by princessofthorns



Series: the wizarding world fic [1]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, F/F, minor robb/margaery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-29
Updated: 2020-08-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:07:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26173972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princessofthorns/pseuds/princessofthorns
Summary: Slytherin Head Girl Margaery Tyrell has a secret admirer. They give her a blue winter rose that glows every time they think of her.
Relationships: Sansa Stark/Margaery Tyrell
Series: the wizarding world fic [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1913557
Comments: 24
Kudos: 222





	once was blind (but now I see)

**Author's Note:**

> I took the liberty of altering the ages of some of the characters - Sansa, for example, is only one year younger than Margaery.

Margaery very much hoped she wouldn’t be bothered once she got to the Slytherin common room.

Six years. That was the amount of time she had prepared herself to become Head Girl. What she hadn’t prepared herself for was the amount of _idiocy_ she would have to face every day?

It was just so frustrating to work with people who were so less efficient than she was; with prefects that didn’t seem to know how to give an order and with a student body that didn’t seem to understand how to follow rules - or who were stupid enough to break them under the Head Girl’s nose. I mean, if you’re not going to behave couldn’t you at least do it in a way Margaery wouldn't be the one to have to deal with it? And those _teachers_ , so dense Margaery wondered if they were all that old to have forgotten how it was like to be a student.

In a nutshell, Margaery was pretty sure she was too good to work at that school. But at least she had the sensitivity to deal with all of that with a fake smile on her face - something Robb Stark, her Head Boy partner, couldn’t manage himself. And that’s because Hufflepuffs are supposed to be the sweet ones.

After finishing a long shower and mentally cursing everyone she had encountered that day, she threw herself on her bed and closed the green and silver drapes shut. Only to open them again aggressively when someone entered the dorm smelling just like Professor Snape’s hair.

“Hey, girl.” Daenerys’ smile was way too big for someone who was wearing a sweaty quidditch uniform at eleven p.m. 

“Hey, babe. You smell terrible,” Margaery whispered, aware of the other girls sleeping in the room.

“Better than your face, though. Tough day?” 

Margaery nodded. “You couldn’t have taken your shower at the prefects’ bathroom? I gave you the password for a reason.”

Dany shrugged and pointed to the floor while bending down to get her toiletries from inside her trunk. “I know you are not your happiest, but you didn’t have to kick the cute box somebody left for you.”

“What?” Margaery looked down and saw a white box tied with a bow kicked aside on the floor. 

“Someone left it at the dormitory’s door earlier.”

Margaery picked up the box from the floor. _Margaery Tyrell_ , said the note attached to it.

She opened it to find a big, beautiful blue rose inside. Margaery held it closer to her face, turning it around on her fingers to examine it.

“Looks like you have a secret admirer,” Dany teased, a towel on her shoulder and her pajamas and bath items in her hands. She was already heading towards the showers when the rose started glowing, startling both of the girls. 

“What is that?” 

The blue light emitted by the rose wasn’t strong enough to bother Margaery’s eyes, but that didn’t help her peace of mind; who knew what else an enchanted flower could do.

“Oh, I know what that is!” Dany exclaimed, and then lowered her voice again, “It’s a magical winter rose! I found out about them when I spent the holidays in the North a few years ago. When you pick one of them, you say the name of the person you’re in love with, and every time you think about them, the rose will glow.”

Margaery’s eyes grew while she carefully dropped the gleaming rose back into the box.

“You truly do have a secret admirer. And they are thinking of you right now!” Dany’s smile now was even bigger than the one before.

-

“ _Expecto Patronum._ ” 

The silver falcon came out of Margaery’s wand, hovering above the Great Lake before disappearing in the air. 

“Wow.”

Margaery spun around to see Sansa Stark, Robb’s younger sister. She was a sixth year Ravenclaw and had become a prefect the year before.

“Hey, Sansa. Studying on a Saturday?” Margaery remarked at the books in Sansa’s hands.

“Yeah. I didn’t have the easiest time with Charms this week, and Flitwick is too nice until it’s time to give us our grades.”

Margaery gave a thoughtful smile. “I should be studying myself, for the N.E.W.T.s. But even people like us should have time off, you know.”

“How do you know how to cast the Patronus Charm?”

Margaery grinned. “I’ve always wanted to learn it, ever since I saw my brother Willas casting one. His guardian is a stunning, huge horse. I think I was ten back then? So in my first year, I begged Professor Lupin to teach me, but he would always say no. He only agreed to it a couple of years later.” 

Margaery cast the spell again, the falcon leaving her wand, floating high above them, before diving in and circling Sansa. She seemed unsure of what to do and tried to touch it, which made Margaery laugh. The other girl’s fingers went through the animal’s translucent form before it faded.

“I’ve heard it is one of the hardest spells to cast, but you make it seem like it’s the Levitation charm.”

Margaery chuckled. She was always looking forward to hearing what people had to say whenever they saw her casting the Patronus. “Well, it is extremely difficult. But I have never practiced any spell as much as I have this one. It took me a while to master it, and I doubt I will succeed like that if I ever have to do it in front of a Dementor or a Lethifold.”

“I’m sure you will.” Sansa gave an adorable smile, before adding quickly, “Not that I hope you’ll ever confront one of those! Of course not.” 

Margaery laughed again, before the redhead asked, tentatively, “Is there any chance you could try and teach me?”

Margaery raised her eyebrows. She didn’t want to do it. She had so many duties as Head Girl and with the exams, and she most definitely enjoyed knowing that she was the only current Hogwarts student who knew how to cast the Patronus.

But Margaery was trained to make people like her, and that made saying _no_ something harder than it should be. Perhaps if Sansa were a man, it would be easier to say no without making it sound like she was rejecting her, men were always easier. But she wasn’t, so Margaery just smiled as if the idea delighted her. “Sure! How about every Thursday, after the prefects’ meeting?”

Sansa beamed at her. “Perfect! Thank you, Margaery.” She pressed her lips as if she wanted to say something else, but instead just shook her head and smiled again.

That day, the blue rose in Margaery's room glowed like never before.

-

As soon the prefects’ meeting was over, Margaery had to forbear a sigh when she remembered her obligation with Sansa. She wanted nothing more than to go to her room, eat the Fudge Flies from Honeydukes she and Dany had hidden, and go to sleep. 

Instead, she greeted Sansa excitedly and told her to meet her at the Room of Requirement in twenty minutes, since Margaery needed to stop by the Slytherin common room to return a book to one of her housemates who needed it to study that night. 

Sansa was so full of enthusiasm Margaery almost felt bad about her own lack of it. 

When she arrived at the Slytherin Dungeon, she quickly spotted Myrcella Baratheon.

“Here, thanks for letting me borrow it!” 

“You’re welcome! Hey, Marge, this is for you. It was outside the girls’ dorm’s door.”

It was a white box, just like the one she had received exactly a week before, the one with the rose.

When she opened it, she gasped. It was a copy of _Carol_ , Margaery’s favorite book, about a muggle-born girl who finds a small hidden tunnel in her family’s new home, that she comes to find out it would take her to a magical but much darker world. The one she had just been gifted with was a new gorgeous illustrated edition that had just been published a couple of months before. 

Margaery went to her room to put the book inside her trunk, and the first thing she noticed was the glowing rose on her windowsill. For the past few days, it had radiated much more than Margaery thought it was healthy.

She couldn’t deny that she had spent the week curious to know who the fuck was that person who seemed to think so much about her. Now, with this book, it had escalated. 

Perhaps she should talk to Dany about it when they had the time. At that moment, however, she didn’t.

-

When she got to the Room of Requirement, Sansa was already there. That night, the room was almost empty, with only a few books about self-defense spells. 

“I was surprised you knew about this room. It’s supposed to be a secret,” Margaery teased.

Sansa smirked. “Robb told me. I can only imagine who told him about it.”

“Soon many others will find out about it anyway, with the party your brother will organize here, after the Hallowe’en Feast,” Margaery threw a glance at her.

“ _I_ was surprised to know he was planning that and more so to hear you were okay with it. I mean, you two are Head Boy and Girl.”

Margaery scowled, “Are you calling us irresponsible?”

Sansa gave a half-smile, “Well…”

Margaery laughed, “You don’t have to worry. My brother Garlan used to be a Head Boy and told me everything we need to know about throwing a party here with safety and without getting us in trouble. Besides, there will be only sixth and seventh years, and it’s Hallowe’en, the most important day in the year for us.” She tilted her head at Sansa and softened her voice, “Please tell me you’re going.”

The redhead chuckled, “I wouldn’t miss it.”

“Good. Now let’s get this started.”

Margaery walked towards Sansa and stood next to her, both of the girls with their wands in hands.

“What do you know about the Patronus?”

“Well, I’ve read about it in these last couple of days. Very advanced magic, it’s a type of positive energy that projects what the Dementor hates: happiness, hope, and wish to survive. And you need to use a happy memory to conjure it.”

Margaery approved. “That’s exactly what it is. Have you chosen your happy memory?”

“Yes, the day my parents gave me my dog when I was eleven.”

Margaery smiled. “That’s nice. Mine is my first Christmas here at Hogwarts. All my brothers were still here, and so was Daenerys. Have you ever spent the holidays here?” At Sansa’s negative, Margaery said, “It’s astonishing. It never snows back home, so it was the first time I saw it. That’s not a problem for you, though.”

“Not at all,” Sansa grinned. 

“Okay. You know the words. Try it.”

Sansa took a deep breath and pointed her wand forward. “ _Expecto Patronum_.”

Nothing happened, as it was expected. 

Sansa looked at her a bit disappointed, and Margaery was quick to ensure her, “Don’t worry. Focus as hard as you can on your memory. Every time you try, focus harder than you did the time before.”

Sansa followed her advice. When she tried a second time, a silver sparkle left her wand. She kept repeating it, with Margaery supporting and correcting her whenever needed, and by the fifteenth or twentieth time she tried, a much bigger and stronger light came out of her wand, illuminating the room and making Margaery close her eyes.

“Did you see this?” Sansa blurted eagerly.

Margaery nodded enthusiastically, “Yeah! That was really good.”

She wasn’t feeling enthusiastic at all, though. That had been _too_ impressive, and at that rate, Sansa might as well be able to conjure a real Patronus in a much shorter time than Margaery had.

 _I need to stop being like that_ , Margaery thought to herself. That wasn’t a competition, and she should only be happy that Sansa was learning with her help. 

_Not only I’ll no longer be the only one who knows how to cast it_ _but_ _she will also be able to say she learned it faster than I did_.

Margaery groaned quietly and rubbed her eyes, trying to get away from those thoughts she unquestionably shouldn’t be having. 

“Are you okay?”

Margaery met Sansa’s big blue eyes full of legit concern and melted a bit.

“Yeah, don’t worry,” she smiled.

“Are you sure? We should stop if you’re tired.”

“No! Don’t worry, let’s keep trying. You’re doing excellent, I think we can advance even more today.”

She was allowed to feel jealous of Sansa _i_ _f_ she didn’t stop helping her, right? It didn’t matter what she was feeling inside, if she kept on doing her best to teach her, she would still be a noble person anyhow, she guessed.

By the time that had only thirty minutes left until curfew, Sansa had progressed. When they were heading back, she was radiating. 

“That was fabulous. It’s so different from any kind of magic I’ve tried before. And you.”

Sansa made them stop and turned so they could be face to face. “You are so incredible, Margaery. You told me some things I could never think of on my own, like that tip you gave me, on how to forget the environment around me and pretend that I’m actually inside my memory. Thank you, so much.” Sansa's smile was so kind.

Margaery surprised even herself when she achieved a genuine smile at that. Even with her previous adverse feelings about that night, she could find a bit of that satisfied feeling she assumed teachers had whenever their students accomplished something with their guidance. 

“Come on, that was all you. I can’t wait to tell Robb about tonight, last week he failed to turn a frog into a cup and I called him all the variations of stupid. Coming back to that subject will be even more fun now.”

Sansa laughed freely, and once again Margaery felt guilty about what she was feeling. When they got to the point where they had to go separate ways, Margaery heading to the Slytherin Dungeon on the right of the Entrance Hall and Sansa to the Ravenclaw Tower on the west, Margaery pulled the other girl into a quick hug.

Sansa was flushed once they separated, and mumbled, “Thank you again for tonight.”

“You’re welcome! See you next week.” Margaery winked at the redhead and went on her way.

That night, the rose kept on shining blue even after Margaery had fallen asleep.

-

Margaery and Dany only got together to talk about Margaery’s anonymous admirer one week later. It was almost midnight since both of them had commitments on Thursday nights - Margaery with Sansa and Dany with quidditch practice - and they were together under Margaery’s bedsheets, concealed by the curtains.

“So,” Dany started conspiratorially, “Do you have any guesses?”

“No,” Margaery lamented. “Maybe Aegon?” He was Dany’s nephew and Margaery’s ex. They went out for a year and were still friends. She had put an end to it when she’d realized boys weren’t her thing. 

Ever since she had made out with Arianne Martell, a former student, at a New Year’s Party back in Highgarden, the fact that she liked girls had been no longer a secret. But everyone, except for Dany, still thought she liked men as well, which she doubted.

“Don’t get me wrong love, but he seems to have moved on.”

Margaery shrugged, and Dany suggested, “Didn’t Harry Hardyng invite you to go to Hogsmeade with him one of these days?”

“Do you honestly think Harry Hardyng’s soft heart would pick up a magical flower for me, or anyone for that matter?” 

Dany chuckled. “You’re right.” Then violet eyes widened. “Perhaps Joffrey?”

Margaery grimaced. Joffrey was a Slytherin sixth year, who had been trying to get into her pants for years - even when he was dating other girls. Sansa being one of them.

“You’re rather observant,” Margaery nudged Dany, “Haven’t you seen anyone checking me out lately?”

“Uh, everyone?” Margaery couldn’t contain a smile at that, and Dany continued, “I might have seen Gendry, I think?”

“Doesn’t he have this weird infatuation with Robb’s sister from the fourth year? Besides, we need to remember that the person is either a Slytherin or has a close friend in Slytherin since the boxes were left- oh!”

Margaery sat on the bed.

“What?”

“No…”

“What is it?” Dany sat up too.

Margaery rubbed her temples. “Robb,” she stated simply, staring at her friend.

It would never fail to amaze Margaery how Dany could understand everything she wanted to say and more with only one look. 

“You guys have always been friends, he’s always had some kind of crush on you. Now you guys are spending much more time together because you’re Head Boy and Girl and he’s best friends with Theon Greyjoy who is a Slytherin and has had the perfect opportunities to place the boxes outside our doors, Marge, we’ve solved it!” Dany was practically ecstatic, “Oh my Gods! It’s a winter rose, and he is _f_ _rom_ the North!” At that, Margaery had to cover her friend’s mouth with her hand.

Only to cover her own mouth when she realized, “Oh, Gods. After the first prefects' meeting, I was talking to some people who hadn’t left about how much I loved _Carol_ and Robb was there.”

That only made Dany smile further. “It’s him.”

“This is terrible. I don’t want to have to blow him off.”

Almost as if it had heard her, the rose started glowing. She and Dany watched it for an instant.

“Do you think he’s jerking off?”

Margaery almost choked. “What?”

“It’s not the first time he starts to think about you past midnight, almost as if he was waking up in the middle of the night just to…”

Margaery whimpered and lied back on the bed. “We can’t be so sure it’s him already.”

“You’re right,” Dany agreed. “We shouldn’t even be so sure it's a _he_ , I mean, the whole school knows, I mean, thinks you’re bi and we are-” She looked around. “Did you hear this?”

“What?”

“I think I heard steps.” Dany stood up and carefully walked towards the door. She paused for a second and then opened it up. Margaery heard a gasp, and Dany turned around with a - _oh, no_ \- white box in her hands.

She promptly closed the door and climbed back into bed, and they opened it. Inside, there was a package of Qizilbash Quality Confectionary Cauldron Cakes. 

“These are your favorites! Who knows about this?”

“ _Uh, everyone_ , I think? I’m literally always eating these.”

Dany sighed, seeming frustrated. Even while feeling restless, it amused Margaery how much her friend seemed to care about that, as if it was her own little enigma to solve.

Margaery studied the rose, still glowing, though the light was slowly getting dimmer. She had never seen that happen during the day; normally the light would turn on and off like a lamp. But at that moment it was gradually going away. 

“Whoever it is, is falling asleep.”

-

“It was three years ago, but I have never forgotten. It was priceless.” 

She and Sansa were lying on the floor of the Room of Requirement, after what had been their seventh class. Any sort of envy Margaery had felt at first at the fact that Sansa seemed to be learning faster than she had was long gone. That day, her Patronus had almost reached the corporeal form, and Margaery had felt nothing but proud.

“Everyone was so convinced she was going to Gryffindor, like father and Jon. So when the Sorting Hat said Ravenclaw, she, Jon and Robb, all of their jaws dropped and all I could do was laugh.” 

“You didn’t think she would end up in Gryffindor?”

“No, I did!” Sansa replied, before eating a piece of one of the Cauldron Cakes Margaery had brought for them, “It’s just that she wanted to go to Gryffindor so bad, it was nice to see her not getting what she wanted for once.”

Margaery chortled, “I always cherish it when you give me these glimpses of your relationship with your sister.”

Recently, there had been a lot of glimpses - because there had been _a lot_ of conversations between the two of them. She and Sansa would remain in the Room of Requirement longer every week, most of the time talking rather than practicing. Sometimes, they would also meet up in the middle of their night patrols, and a couple of times even during the day, whenever they ran into each other on the corridors between classes.

Margaery felt dumb for previously being reluctant about that. Hanging out with Sansa was so good, to the point where every Thursday she would even get excited for the prefects’ meeting to be over so the two of them could meet. Also, those nights with her were a great break from all of her burdens as Head Girl and all of the studying. For both of them, she wished to think.

“But why were you guys that confident she was going to Gryffindor?”

“Arya is a lot like Jon. But now I understand why she is in Ravenclaw, and so does she,” Sansa explained, “For example, they both absolutely love dueling, ever since they were children. But while Jon likes dueling for the, I don’t know if you get me, romantic part of it? The whole hero fighting the bad guy prospect of it.”

Margaery nodded, “I understand. That’s the Gryffindor thing, right? The hero, and the brave guy, and fighting the evil and saving the world.” She rolled her eyes and Sansa chuckled.

“Exactly. And Arya has never been precisely like that. She was interested in the dueling itself, not in what she would get by being good at it. She always appreciated learning and reading about it, the history of it, the rules, and the customs. Theoretically speaking, she knows much more than Jon does. I think that’s what makes the difference. Many think Ravenclaws are all about books, but no. They value the knowledge, and that’s what Arya does.” Sansa seemed to ponder for a moment, and completed, “She’s also a very practical thinker. More than I am.” 

Margaery smiled. “You haven’t given me any indication of not being a practical thinker, but I know better than to assume.” She stretched her legs and folded her arms under her head. “I almost went to Ravenclaw too, you know? The Sorting Hat spent nearly five minutes wavering between the two houses.”

“So you were almost a Hatstall?” Sansa teased.

“Yeah. However, it didn’t have to go all the way to consider my personal preference. The Hat ultimately chose Slytherin on its own.”

“And if it had been your choice, would you have agreed with it?”

“Definitely. It would’ve been interesting to be in Ravenclaw, though. You and I could’ve ended up sleeping in the same room,” Margaery winked at her.

Sansa gave a jumpy laugh, “Yeah.” She cleared her throat. “Besides Arya, no one else in our family was exactly a surprise. Maybe Rickon will be next year, but no one was shocked when Bran and I were sorted into Ravenclaw. We used to think Robb could go to Gryffindor, but Hufflepuff always made sense as well.”

 _That_ was the only bad thing about spending time with Sansa. The fact that she was often reminded of Robb, who was her and Dany's main suspect of being Margaery’s unknown admirer.

The whole thing disturbed Margaery more and more every week. That little game had lasted for over a month now, and Margaery couldn’t put into words how much it irritated her not knowing who that person was - or at least, not being sure of who they were.

Even if she very much suspected Robb, she didn’t let it show to him, and their relationship was, at least for him, the same as it had always been.

For the past eight weeks, she had received a white box every single Thursday. She had gotten a nice handmade green and golden scarf (not silver, and Margaery figured it was a reference to the traditional and outdated sigil of her family rather than a Slytherin symbol), red and yellow (non-magical) roses and all varieties of sweets from Honeydukes - she and Dany had come to the conclusion that whenever she got those, it meant her secret admirer was in a particularly uninspired week. 

That Thursday however, they had outdone themselves. Margaery had stopped by her room before the prefects’ meeting, and the white box had been already waiting for her. Inside, there was a silver locket, of a falcon.

She had understood what it meant instantly - it was her Patronus. The fact that the mysterious person had this information _could_ be a good insight into whoever they were. It _could_ be, if not for the fact that Margaery had spent the past couple of years showing off her Patronus conjuring skill in every opportunity she had, which had resulted in half of the school knowing about it.

“Are you excited about the party Saturday?” Sansa stood up, offering her hand to help Margaery.

“Yes!” Margaery smirked, “Let’s see if those Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors know what they’re doing.” It had been a group of seventh-year students from those two houses who had planned the party, Robb and her ex-boyfriend Aegon included. 

When Sansa began to gather her things to go, Margaery stopped her. “Not so quick. We’re doing it one last time.”

“Okay, teacher.” Sansa gently pushed Margaery aside.

Margaery held her hand - yes, that was a thing. Sansa kept insisting that whenever Margaery held her hand it was easier for her to feel secure and content like casting the spell required her to. Margaery wasn’t positive it was the most reasonable thing since it seemed to be the exact opposite point of learning self-defense charms, but she’d decided to cut her some slack for a while. Besides, it was nice and Margaery felt important.

“ _Expecto Patronum_.”

The silver smoke came out of her wand, taking the form of an immense creature that looked like some kind of quadruped, before disappearing earlier than it should. It was not perfect, but it would get there soon enough.

“It still looks… hard to tell. What do you think it is?” 

Margaery smiled at her. “I think it’s a wolf.”

-

“What is that?” Margaery asked while whipping away a tear from her cheek. Why had she taken a shot of the first drink Dany had put in front of her, she wouldn’t know. 

“Daisyroot Draught,” Dany coughed. “It’s made from daisies, for the Gods’ sake, how the hells would I know this shit is stronger than Firewhisky.”

The party had started less than an hour after the feast had ended. The Room of Requirement was now smaller than it usually was, but it was still pretty big. There was an enchanted antique record player where the music was coming from, around twenty tables separated from the dance floor, and a small bar where some Gryffindor students were serving both beverages and food.

She and Dany had only had one glass of Elf-made wine before heading to the dance floor, where they had stayed for an hour before coming to a sit on a table with some other Slytherins.

“Whatever, I’m gonna go dancing again.” Dany rose too quickly and staggered, making Margaery stand too to hold her.

“I got her.” Aegon appeared and placed his arm around his aunt’s shoulders. “Don’t worry, Marge,” he reassured her, before escorting Dany to the dance floor himself. 

Margaery went back to her chair, only to see Sansa standing next to her table. She looked so pretty wearing a white blouse and a blue skirt that matched her eyes.

“Can I seat?” The redhead was smiling, a cup of Butterbeer in her hand.

“Please.” 

“So, is it living up to your expectations?” Sansa questioned her once she was seated.

“It’s been really fun so far so I’m guessing it exceeded.” 

Sansa giggled, “So you were expecting my brother to disappoint?”

“What can I say?” Margaery took the cup from Sansa’s hand to take a sip; there was no way she would be going back to that bottle of daisy drink anytime soon.

They finished that cup and proceeded to share a few glasses of Nettle wine that was being served - Margaery had to admit the variation of drinks those guys had gotten there was something else. And before she knew, another hour had passed and they were already tipsy.

Margaery laughed, “You know, back when I first began helping you with the Patronus thing, I was too jealous of you.”

Sansa’s eyes widened as a wide smile took over her face. “What could possibly make you jealous of me?”

“You were learning so much faster than I had back when I first started!”

Sansa’s bewildered semblance was even bigger now. “Wait, what? That bothered you?” Margaery nodded, and Sansa gaped at her. “Didn’t Professor Lupin begin to teach you back when you were thirteen? You were three years younger than I am right now.”

Margaery gave a self-deprecating smile when recognizing how silly she had sounded, and lowered her head. Only to feel soft fingers lifting her chin.

“There’s absolutely no reason for you to be jealous of me, or anyone else. About anything.” Sansa’s tone was so serious when she declared that, Margaery could almost - _almost_ \- feel a blush creeping up her cheeks. 

A moment went by until Margaery realized Sansa’s fingers were still touching her face. 

“I-”

“Hey, Margaery!” A brunette Margaery acknowledged as one of her classmates - Jeyne Westerling, from Hufflepuff - arrived at their table. “Sansa, could I talk to you for a second?”

Sansa had already withdrawn her hand, and hesitated, “Uh, yeah sure.” She looked apologetically at Margaery. “Can I meet you afterward?”

“Sure! Jeyne, take my seat. I’m gonna take a walk.” She smiled and left the table.

She roamed around the party for a few moments before focusing her gaze on what seemed to be a ladder, on the far end of the Room.

To Margaery’s surprise, the stairs took her to a balcony. She had never known the Room of Requirement could have a balcony. 

She leaned against it, feeling the cold breeze hitting her face, still flushed from the wine, watching the moon, and enjoying the view of the Hogwarts grounds.

When Margaery found herself wondering whether or not the blue rose on her window was glowing at that moment, the door that led to the balcony opened.

An also flushed Robb Stark came in, eyebrows raising once he saw her.

“Marge! I’m sorry, I didn’t think anyone would be here.” 

“It’s okay. Congrats for tonight, by the way.”

He grinned, “Thanks and-” he looked her up and down - she was wearing a simple and short silver dress that she knew suited her just fine - before flushing even more. “Uh, you look beautiful.”

Margaery blamed the fact that her typically easy smile didn’t come out so smoothly on the wine.

They gawked at each other for a few seconds, before Margaery gave in, “We need to talk.”

He looked surprised by her tone and took a few steps forward to lean against the balcony as well. They faced each other.

“Is everything okay?”

Later, Margaery would blame the alcohol again, for making her suddenly so convinced of something she hadn’t been before.

“Robb, you know how much I care about you. But I don’t feel the same as you do.”

He looked at her like he hadn’t quite understood what she’d said, and that drove the words out of her. “I appreciate what you have done for me, in the past weeks. It’s really sweet, but…”

She tried to pick the right words so he wouldn’t feel rejected, but she couldn’t find them. She had declined men before, but never someone she considered so much, and for some reason, whatever circumstances they were in that moment seemed to make it even harder for her.

All of a sudden, she caught herself observing him under the moonlight. The way his auburn hair looked dark in the night, only a few brighter strands standing out. The unbelievable blue of his eyes, the way he looked at her.

 _I don’t want him at all_ , Margaery thought, _but perhaps if I tried_.

She leaned in, staring at his lips. He moved towards her immediately, and they kissed.

As she should’ve known, it didn’t feel right. He was sweet, and a good kisser, but it still didn’t feel right. So she just refrained herself from sighing in frustration against his mouth and waited for it to be over.

Which happened seconds later, when the door opened wide again. They separated from one another to face the shocked expressions on Theon Greyjoy and Sansa’s faces.

When looking at Sansa, an almost liquid conclusion poured itself inside of Margaery. 

When taking in the dark red of _her_ hair, the clear blue of _her_ eyes, the way _she_ looked at Margaery, always looked at her, Margaery understood on the spot why even for a second she had felt like she could try anything with Robb - who looked so incredibly much like his sister.

“Uh, Jeyne is looking for you, Robb.” Margaery had seen Theon Greyjoy in many different situations, but never as uncomfortable as he looked at that moment.

But Margaery couldn’t give too much thought into it, not when she’d just realized that tears were rapidly filling Sansa’s big eyes.

And those tears led her to understand _everything_. 

Theon had grown up with the Starks; Robb wasn’t the only one who was his friend, Sansa was too. Robb hadn't been the only one who was at the prefects’ meeting the night she'd mentioned how much she loved _Carol_ , Sansa had too. Robb wasn’t the only Northern who could’ve known about the existence of magical winter roses, Sansa was one too.

The fucking _falcon_ necklace.

And so many other little things and little signs Sansa had given her, throughout all those weeks.

_How blind have I been?_

Sansa fled the balcony without saying a word, and Margaery followed her without a second thought. Sansa was considerably fast though, and Margaery only reached her when she had already left the Room.

“Sansa, wait, I’m sorry!” Margaery all but shouted when she was still passing through the Room’s concealed entrance. 

“Don’t.” Sansa swung around to face her. “You don’t owe me an apology, or an explanation.” One or two tears were now running freely on her face.

Margaery opened her mouth to speak, but Sansa cut her, “I am the one who’s sorry, Margaery.” Behind her, Barnabas the Barmy and the eight trolls had stopped whatever they were doing inside the tapestry hung on the corridor to watch them.

“I’m the one who overdid it and saw things where there were none,” she shook her head, “You don’t understand me, but-”

“It was you, right? The person who sent me the rose and everything else?” Margaery's inquire was soft.

Sansa looked like she’d stopped breathing for a second, before replying in a cracked voice, “Yes.”

Margaery took a deep breath, “Sansa, back inside, I wasn’t-”

“Kissing my brother?” 

Margaery blinked. “I was. But I didn’t want him.” At the look on Sansa’s face, Margaery cursed herself. Whatever happened to always choosing the right thing to say? She could only imagine what her grandmother would have to say if she had seen her that evening.

“I just didn't anticipate seeing you two together, that’s all,” Margaery knew it wasn’t all, “But you owe me nothing. I just want to be alone now.”

Margaery was too dazed. With the drinking, and with kissing someone she hadn't wanted to, and with discovering that the person who had been messing with the shit out of her for the past eight weeks was not at all who she had been foreseeing. She was dazed and didn’t do or say anything when Sansa turned around and left. 

“I knew this thing wasn’t going to be a good idea,” Barnabas the Barmy murmured.

-

Margaery didn’t return to the party. Instead, she mused for a couple of minutes and then made her way to her own common room.

She didn’t bother showering, merely undressed, and climbed into bed, shutting the drapes. 

Unsurprisingly, the rose was glowing. It was probably Margaery’s imagination, but she had the impression that it was shining brighter than normal.

Margaery didn’t avert her eyes from it. For how long, she wouldn’t know. 

She only let herself drift to sleep when the blue light slowly began to fade.

-

For the following five days, Sansa avoided Margaery like the plague.

Margaery had never paid attention to Sansa during the meals, but she figured it wasn’t natural for someone who couldn’t - and in the past days, _really_ couldn’t - stop thinking about her to just spend the whole dinner without throwing one single glance in her direction. 

Whenever they bumped into each other in the halls, Sansa would turn the other way around or speed up her pace. On the night of her patrol, she had chosen the furthest away area possible from the one where Margaery was.

And at the prefects’ meeting earlier that day, she had arrived late and had left the second it was over.

Margaery was lying on the floor of the Room of Requirement, exactly how she had been a week before - with the stark difference that she had not been alone then.

Margaery had taken the last days to think. On how to fix what was happening, yes, but also on how she’d permitted that happen. She was so enraged at herself for not speculating it could be Sansa before. More than that, she was alarmed. Knowing how to read people had always been one of Margaery’s attributes; was she beginning to lose that? 

She had spent almost the entire Sunday in bed, cuddled with Dany, who was not feeling like getting up either - only her case had more to do with the massive hangover she had woken up with. 

“If it makes you feel any better, I bet she’s worse than you are,” Dany had mumbled against Margaery’s shoulder.

“Why in the seven hells would that make me feel any better?” She had responded, staring at the rose that had barely stopped glowing at all that day.

She had only left the bed in the late afternoon, when some girls had warned her that Robb Stark was outside the Slytherin Dungeon, insisting on talking to her.

Both of them apologized multiple times and asked the other if their relationship could stay the same. Both agreed - and somehow accomplished that, after one little awkward Monday, they eventually managed to behave naturally -, and Margaery carefully avoided any mention of Sansa. 

And then there she was, on the first Thursday without receiving any gifts from any secret admirer. She had spent the whole day wondering what Sansa had arranged for that week, before everything. 

Twenty minutes had passed since she had entered the Room, and nothing. She was debating with herself whether or not she should give up and go to her common room when she heard the door opening. 

And then her heart skipped several beats when she saw Sansa, with a timid look on her face, coming inside. With a white box in her hands. 

They both took slow steps towards one another until they stood face to face. Sansa lifted the box, but Margaery didn’t have to look to know what it was.

The note attached to it said, _Just letting you know that I’m looking forward to our meeting tonight. I know you’re thinking of it_. And inside, the blue rose Margaery had been given nine weeks before.

Sansa gave an almost imperceptible smile when she glanced down at the box, before placing it on a table next to them. 

Margaery was the first one to speak. “I know you said I don’t owe you an explanation. I disagree, though. But I was thinking perhaps you would like to give me an explanation of your own first?”

Sansa nodded. A few beats when by before she opened her mouth and Margaery heard her voice for the first time in days. 

“I’ve always liked you. Ever since I first saw you, five years ago. I had never realized it was more than platonic feelings until a year ago, though,” she shook her head a little, “I should have. I remember when I was in the fourth year, I found out Joffrey had hit on you while he was still with me, and I felt like I understood him more than I was mad at him.”

Margaery couldn’t just not chuckle at that, and Sansa allowed herself a small smile before continuing. “But last year was when it really started. When I became a prefect, we began to see each other more often. At the meetings, you held more authority than the Head Girl herself, but you did it so effortlessly and in a way that didn’t seem arrogant or pushy at all, even she adored you.”

Margaery had heard all of that before, but listening to Sansa saying it was different. She wasn’t sure, but she did think she understood why.

“And when I found out about you and Aegon splitting up, I was happy. And I didn’t know why, because Aegon was such a great guy and you seemed so happy.” She paused for a moment, her hands clasped in front of her stomach, and then resumed. “But after the holidays break, when I heard about you and Arianne, I knew it. I knew how I felt about you.”

“Why didn’t you ever say anything?” Margaery asked the mandatory question.

Sansa shrugged. “What could I have said? You’ve always confused me so much. Sometimes you talked to me in a way that had me thinking you were flirting, but you did that to everyone,” she scoffed, “And other times you would look at me as if I were only Robb’s little sister. Besides, we were never really close. I had no idea how I could even begin to tell you how I felt without sounding completely random.”

“I didn’t meticulously plan to send you all that stuff at first,” she clarified. “Only the rose. But then you told us about the book… and I decided to ask Theon to deliver that to you too. And then before I knew, it had become a habit. And I liked to think it was making you happy somehow.”

Margaery decided at that moment to not share the fact that all of that had made her more annoyed than happy.

“So you know everything now,” Sansa concluded, and focused her eyes on Margaery’s for the first time.

“Yes,” Margaery spoke, her voice a little hoarse. “Sansa, about Saturday. I didn’t mean to kiss your brother. It was a weird, drunken moment where I was confused and didn’t know what I was doing. I’m not attracted to him, or any other men. There’s nothing between us.”

“I know. He explained it to me.”

They stayed silent for a moment, before Margaery asked, a smile playing in her lips, “So… what now?”

“What now?” Sansa echoed, still serious but less unsure than before.

Margaery smirked, “I was wondering what you had planned to give me today.”

“Well,” Sansa bit her lip, “nothing.”

Margaery eyes questioned her, and she breathed heavily before responding, “I was expecting to tell you everything on Saturday. If it all went well or not, I didn’t think there would be a reason for me to send you anything else.”

“That’s fair,” Margaery accepted.

“Can I ask which one was your favorite?”

“It’s tough to choose,” Margaery smiled and scooted closer towards the taller girl. “The rose was very romantic, and the falcon pendant very thoughtful.”

“I believe now it will just serve to remind you of how I’ve learned the Patronus so much quicker than you did.”

Margaery giggled, and refuted her, “You are _still_ learning.” And then resumed, “The book was something I had been wanting for a while and that scarf is lovely. I've actually worn it a few times.”

“I know,” Sansa grinned, “I saw you. It was… awfully nice.” She frowned a little, and then added, “Which Ravenclaw did you have putting the box outside my door?”

“The greatest Ravenclaw there is. Your sister.” Sansa chuckled at Margaery’s answer, and for a moment it felt like before.

Another beat went by, and Margaery confessed, “I know that hasn’t been exactly _my_ place, but I’ve been thinking about you a lot these past few days. Maybe even before that.”

Margaery could see Sansa’s breathing laboring, especially when she whispered, “Yeah?”

Margaery nodded. “Yes. And I think we still have a lot to talk about. So I was wondering,” she took one more step forward, “If you would like to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend. Just the two of us.”

Sansa swallowed, her words leaving her lips slowly as if she were afraid to say something that could ruin the moment. “That would make me very happy.”

They were seriously close now, staring at each other’s eyes, when Margaery asked in a low voice, “Are you sure you don’t want to give me anything tonight?”

“Perhaps I could give you something,” a weak voice spoke in return before Sansa’s warm hands brought Margaery’s face to hers.

Their lips touched, and it felt like relief. One of Sansa’s hands fell to her waist while the other stroked her cheek, and it felt right. Margaery buried her left hand into red hair and used the other to pull Sansa’s body flushed against hers, and it felt wonderful. Their tongues slid against one another, and it felt like something she’d been waiting for.

And when Sansa pressed her against the side of the table and commenced to trail a path of so delicate kisses from her jaw to her ear, Margaery wondered just how bright could that rose be shining at that moment. 

**Author's Note:**

> Comment and kudos if you liked it?
> 
> My tumblr in case you wanna talk about Sansaery: @bachianinhaone


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